By Howard Fischer | Capitol Media Services via PinalCentral
New figures from the Department of Economic Security show that 23,037 individuals filed for first-time jobless benefits in the past week. That’s up from fewer than 22,000 the week before.
On one hand, those numbers are a sharp decline from what happened to the Arizona economy after Ducey imposed his stay-at-home order and ordered the closure of all but businesses he considered essential. That led to claims for basic state unemployment benefits, which previously had been running in the 3,500-a-week range, ballooning past 132,000.
But economist George Hammond said the state is far from being out of the fiscal woods.
